Get Shredded: The Best Leaf Shredders In 2022

Why Trust Us

To give you the best leaf mulchers and shredders, we spent a little over a week researching the market, looking into brands, comparing the best-sellers, and reading both positive and negative leaf shredder reviews. While the selection process was slow and tricky, we're certain we came away with top-quality units that are not only efficient and safe but also reasonably priced.

Who This Is For

This guide is for anyone tired of stuffing leaf piles into bags. Whether you're looking for an affordable electric leaf shredder that doesn't make much noise or a powerful gas leaf mulcher for home and professional use, we've got you and your yard covered.

How We Picked

When selecting our roundup of the best leaf mulchers for this guide, we looked at compact, safe, easy-to-use, and efficient models with high mulching ratios. While we included both electric and gas-powered leaf mulcher models, our main focus was on light and portable electric units.

Features To Look For In Leaf Shredders

Before you make that order final, make sure you’ve found a leaf shredder that's best suited to your needs. We know it’s tempting to go straight for the option with the best features, or the one that will take the most leaves, or whichever shredder costs the least, but this doesn’t mean it’s the right product for you. Consider the size of your yard, the amount of work the shredder will undertake, your storage options, potential noise complaints, and whether it will harm the environment.

Power - Everyone loves a tool packed full of power, and these leaf shredders have heaps of them, ideal for any leaf shredding, crushing, cutting, or mulching job you can throw at them. Ranging from 13 to 15 Amps, these babies have enough power to shred your leaves, your neighbors' leaves, and even the leaves of someone you’ve not even met yet.

This power dictates how quickly you can get the job done, and so if you’re working in a commercial environment, you need something that can shred as many leaves as possible in the shortest amount of time. More casual shredders may not need this same power, but the temptation may be too much to resist.

More powerful motors will also avoid blockage, which could be a problem if you try to pack too many leaves in at once. Of course, the more powerful a shredder, the more expensive it is (typically). You know your situation better than we do, so make this decision according to your shredding needs.

Capacity - The capacity of your machine should depend on the size of the job you need to complete. Smaller yards with fewer trees and leaves won’t require as large of capacity as you’d need if you were tackling an estate or public park.

Large capacity shredders come with substantially sized bins to deposit leaves into, but most of our readers may not need to consider anything above 10 gallons. If you want to go all out and have the option to shred every leaf you’ve ever found in one go, then, by all means, go for it.

Noise - Electric leaf shredders aren’t as loud as their gas-powered counterparts, but that doesn’t mean they still don’t make some noise. In fact, it’ll be a challenge for you to find a shredder you could describe as ‘whisper quiet’ as they’re still shredding leaves, cracking twigs, and munching away.

It’s important to keep this in mind when purchasing a leaf shredder, as too much noise could disturb the neighbors and cause them to file complaints against you, especially if you would like to do your shredding on a Saturday morning. While you won’t find a silent shredder, you can still look for the quietest one if potential noise pollution is a problem.

Functions - If your shredder shreds and does nothing else, that’s great, you’ve got what you’ve paid for, but it’s even better if it has a variety of other cool and useful features, too. This can include mulching, cutting, collecting, and chipping.

While these extra features aren’t essential for all, they can come in handy for more substantial clearing jobs. And if you work in this industry, they can make your job much more straightforward. Similarly, if you have a lot of yard space, a lot of leaves, and a lot of garden waste to dispose of, they can also ease the stress of garden clutter. To make things even easier, you can also look for a leaf vacuum shredder that does even more of the hard work for you. Often, these additional functions cost little more than standalone shredders, anyway, and whatever you do spend extra will be recouped with speed, efficiency, and happy yards all year-round.

Portability and storage - You won’t be able to use your shredder throughout the year, as once winter comes there won’t be much point after the initial leaf clearing. When your shredder is taking a break during the colder months, you must have ample storage space to prevent it from sitting out over Christmas and New Year and potentially getting damaged by adverse weather. You can take apart most leaf shredders to make storage easier, which is great news if you’re short on space.

You should also consider how portable your shredder is, as this will impact how easy it will be to transport it around the yard. We all know leaves aren’t that heavy by themselves, but they can be surprisingly dense in a bunched pile. You don’t want to be the person who carries their leaves from one end of the yard to the other several times a day because you lack the foresight to invest in a suitably lightweight option, do you? The best thing to do is to look for a product with durable, heavy-duty wheels, as these can withstand years (maybe decades) of use.

Environmental impact - Naturally, electric shredders are more environmentally friendly than gas-powered shredders, so you’re already doing your bit for the planet by investing in an electric unit over a gas-powered one. This responsibility doesn’t stop there though, and while you are using electricity, this can still impact both the world around you and your own utility bills, especially if you pick a more powerful shredder.

Shredders with built-in mulching technology can help you further contribute to a better environment, and you can add mulched leaves to your compost bin (or a separate mulch bin) and use it as fertilizer to encourage plant and grass growth. These machines will also often come with reusable collection bags, further promoting sustainability and encouraging users to be more responsible for the environment.

Safety - We know safety is not exactly fun to talk about, but we have to, and we could never forgive ourselves if something were to happen to you because we didn’t make it clear how to safely operate a leaf shredder. It’s not just for you or our benefit either, but also for your kids, who - in classic child fashion - are a curious breed, eager to flick and fiddle with buttons and switches, stick their hands in dangerous places, and generally do everything they can to maim themselves all in the name of fun.

Generally speaking, you want your shredder to be as safe as it can be. Luckily, the best leaf mulchers and shredders go above and beyond to ensure nothing but safety for you and everyone who may come into contact with it. These safety features include automatic shut-off should the unit overload from clogged feeding chutes, and reset buttons which can be lifesavers should something go wrong.

Many shredders also come with a filter that prevents dust from escaping and stops you from inhaling tiny little leaf particles, which, while not dangerous may not be the best thing for you.

Replacement parts - Any product that comes with replacement parts is immediately a win, and depending on the construction of your leaf shredder, you may be gifted free replacement parts with your purchase (yay!). These parts won’t be as exciting as new motors, alternative power cords, or brand-new casings, but they're very useful: shredding strings. Yeah, not super-exciting, but they will come in handy when (not if) your original strings fray or break, hindering their effectiveness and making your shredding job much more of a challenge. However, some customers believe the original strings aren’t sufficient and search out alternative options. This is simple enough and can improve your shredding capabilities.

Not all leaf shredders use these strings, though, and if you purchase one that uses metal blades or plastic blades instead, see if the products offer free replacements or spares upon purchase. If not, this could sway you towards a product offering replacements, all for your benefit.

Ease of use and assembly - We all want something that’s easy to use and easy to assemble. Some awesome features that make shredding even easier include moveable chutes, which allow you to throw leaves in from any angle, adjustable shredding settings, and automatic leaf disposal.

As for assembly, most leaf shredders can be put together as easily as they can be taken apart, making storage during the off-season more convenient.

Types Of Leaf Shredder

Corded electric leaf mulchers - Corded or electric leaf shredders are equipped with motors that are rated in amps, ranging anywhere from 8 amps to 15 amps. As you'd expect, the larger this number, the more powerful the electric leaf mulcher. Since they run on electricity, there's no fuel to mix, making them safer to use and more eco-friendly than their gas-powered counterparts. If you're looking for a quiet machine, so you don't disturb your neighbors, you want an electric leaf mulcher or shredder.

The main downside of corded shredders is the fact that they're, well, corded. You're physically limited to the extension cord length, so when shopping for a corded shredder, it's best to look for models with long extension cords.

Gas-powered shredders - Gas shredders measure engine power in cubic centimeters (cc). Similar to electric models, the higher this number, the more powerful the shredder. Gas-powered leaf mulchers are incredibly powerful, making them the ideal choice for professional landscapers as well as folks with large properties with lots of trees. Since they're gas-powered, you won't be limited by the length of the cord, and you also don't have to worry about battery replacements.

On the other hand, you do have to deal with fuel mixing and storing flammable gas. These models are also very loud and more expensive to run.

Cordless battery-powered shredders - Battery-powered electric leaf mulchers run on rechargeable lithium-ion batteries, so there's no oil mixing to worry about, nor is there an extension cord that could limit you. Lightweight and portable, cordless electric leaf mulcher units are usually handheld, so they're easy to maneuver, making them the perfect choice for beginners.

The downside, of course, is battery life. The average run time is 15 to 40 minutes, depending on the battery. If you have a large yard with many trees and are looking for a battery-powered tool, we recommend getting a model with a 40volt battery.

Handheld vs. stand-alone leaf mulchers - Leaf shredders are available as handheld and stand-alone devices, and both versions have their pros and cons.

Handheld leaf mulchers are usually lightweight and easy to maneuver and transport, making them ideal for large yards. Some handheld models offer both blower vacuum and mulcher capabilities, allowing you to blow leaves into manageable piles for easier vacuum collection. On the other hand, these devices don't have as much capacity as standalone mulchers, plus some models are too heavy for long cleaning sessions.

Stand-alone units are bigger and typically heavier than their handheld counterparts, which is a plus because they have more capacity. They are stationary and can be placed anywhere in the yard, but are typically placed right in the center. Since you don't carry them, you don't have to worry about their weight, but you must frequently walk to and from the shredder when cleaning the yard.

Q: What’s the difference between a leaf blower and a leaf shredder?

A: A leaf blower propels air out of a nozzle to move leaves and grass cuttings into manageable piles that you can then shred and mulch with a leaf shredder/mulcher. If you're wondering which one you need for your yard, the answer is both: a leaf blower will help you clean up your garden waste and debris in no time, while a shredder will help get rid of those piles and create mulch for your garden.

Q: Do leaf shredders work on pine needles?

A: Most leaf shredders work well on a variety of yard debris, including leaves, twigs, small branches, and yes, pine needles and even pine cones. They are ideal for creating mulch which you can then use around trees and shrubs to help prevent weeds, protect plants from frost, and slow moisture evaporation.

Q: Are mulched leaves good for compost?

A: Yes, leaf mulch is great for compost! As long as you shred your leaf pile (ideally shortly after the leaves have fallen from the trees) and mix it with a green source of nitrogen, it will make for excellent natural compost.

Q: Why do we need to dry the leaves before shredding?

A: You don't necessarily need to wait for the leaves to dry before you shred them, but it is recommended you do just that with most units. This is because shredding works best and fastest when leaves are dry, crisp, and brittle. Damp or green leaves and grass clippings can clog the blades of some electric leaf mulchers.

Sources:

1. Put Fall Leaves to Work - Gardener’s Supply
2. Using Autumn’s Bounty - Planet Natural